Hey guys,

My fiance and I just booked our first ever trip to Vegas from Dec 19 to 25th! We need help on couple of things since we really don't know anything about Vegas other than lots of eating, shows and of course gambling! I love poker and table games and she loves blackjack.

1) I have 3 hotels booked right now....But if you were me, which one would you choose: 2 nights Monte Carlo and 4 nights MGM or 2 nights Monte Carlo, 2 nights MGM and 2 nights Planet Hollywood?

2) We have lots of shows that we want to watch like Penn & Teller, David Copperfield, 'O' by Cirque du Soleil, etc.... When and where should we buy tickets to guarantee the lowest price so we don't get ripped off?

3) Any must-go places we need to check out while we are there?

4) Last but not least, where should we gamble? Any good poker room for NLHE or even nightly tournaments? Any good tournaments going on during that time?

Thanks! Much appreciated for all the help!

1. If you have to split up the trip at all, 2 nights MC and 4 MGM. Two hotels in six days is a hassle. Three hotels in six days is a nightmare.

2, 3, 4: others will pipe in.

1) try to avoid switching hotels. It's a hassle...

2) I think for O your pretty much stuck to the box office at Bellagio, or book in advance through their site. For the other shows check out the tickets4tonight boots that you'll find all over the strip. There might be cheaper ways but those guys give good prices for tonight's or tomorrow's shows. As for shows at MGM related locations (all cirque shows plus some others) start playing the MyVegas game on Facebook and get some points. You'll be able to get free tickets for them, or a free 2nd ticket

3) lots of things.. Depending on what you like :-). Just go there, walk down the strip and visit the resorts. Don't forget to visit Fremont street (downtown vegas).

4) I think the daily tournaments at Aria are very good. Starts at 1pm and 7pm, decent turnout. Check pokeratlas.com for a full list of tournaments and find one that fits your budget. Keep in mind that most ~30-50 dollar tournaments are more SNGs where you'll be short stacked most of the time, so I would personally not play them.

Have fun!!

Oh yeah one more thing: December can be cold... Wend there once and many people seemed to have forgotten to bring any suitable clothing which lead for them to walk outside on flip flops and shorts... Keep an eye on the forecast before you pack!

I think that you will find that most of the shows you want to see will go dark that week. Performers have families too and some of those shows simply won't run.

1) MGM 6 nights why move rates are good and moving to Monte Carlo doesn't help anything but save a few bucks

2) Do you want cheap tickets or good seats. There are Tix4half price or such avaiable if you want good seats just go thru casino. A lot are dark though

3) Go downtown once

4) second aria tourney all the poker rooms are good but Aria and V are favs and I like PH.

This. A lot of restaurants are even closed for a few days.

This is not true. I just checked and the three shows he stated are all on during the dates when he is there. Most of them are dark the week to 10 days prior to that, when Vegas is really slow. But as you get towards Christmas, visitors increase and the shows open back up.

This is also not true. A few local places might close Christmas Eve or Day, but virtually all Strip restaurants will be open. I've visited Vegas about eight times immediately before, during and after Christmas and never ran into a problem with availability of the on Strip restaurants.

Thanks for the info we are going the week before christmas and seems like the shows we want to watch... O and Penn&teller are performing during that time.... How is the poker at MGM?

If you're playing 1/2, 1/3, 2/5 then the poker is basically the same anywhere it's spread.

It's good you are also close to Aria, PH. and for a slightly longer walk Bellagio, Ballys the V is a two mile walk.

1) First option. Monte Carlo has easy access to the Aria poker room and a tram to Bellagio. MGM has a decent poker room, and the monorail is a good option for that side of the strip. PH has a good poker room, but moving twice is a little too much.

2) Ask the clerk when you check in. They might put you in touch with a host, who might hook you up. If not, then try what other people have posted.

3) Bellagio fountains. If there is one thing a Vegas first timer must see, that's it. Another great spot is Foundation Room at Mandalay Bay. Go around sunset, grab a drink, go out on the balcony, and watch the strip light up.

4) Aria. Good for poker and blackjack. Great daily tournaments too. Be sure to get an MLife card.

View from Foundation Room balcony at night:

i like switching hotels mid-trip on longer stays, but i don't think i'd bother on a 6 day trip unless you were going from one end of the strip to the other, OR you wanted to try a higher end place for part of your stay. MGM, PH, and MC are all about the same in terms of location and quality so just pick one and be happy with it. PH is the most centrally located of the three.

As a poker player and first time visitor to vegas, make sure you check out all the big rooms. Bellagio, Venetian and Aria. Wynn room is a bit smaller but worth checking out for sure.

The dumpier rooms are probably a bit easier to play in. Bellagio, Venetian and Aria are shark infested waters

Make sure you get a players card and use it to buy show tix. you're looking at 20-30% off in many cases. I've only ever bought tix from the hotel box office. I have never tried those discount places. I suggest picking a show you really want to see and getting a great seat right from the box office. It will be a much more memorable experience overall.

MGM renovated last year and is much improved. PH is pretty nice and center strip. MC is across the street from MGM and isn't as nice as the other two not worth switching too from MGM. I also like to switch hotels especially from south strip to north strip but not across the street gives you a different flavor.

1) I would advise against trying to switch hotels too many times. MGM is a good place to stay for the price, PH is great- Fun hotel to stay at with a good crowd.

2) If you have M-life tier status that is by far the best way to book any cirque show. I would recommend Love at the Mirage for Cirque, fantastic show.

3) If you haven't been to Vegas then you probably want to spend some time walking around the strip. The Bellagio fountains are amazing if you've never seen them, the volcano at the Mirage is kind of cool too. I would recommend spending one night walking around downtown. A different crowd/atmosphere than the strip but theres a lot of cool bars around there. Check out Gold Spike, Container Park, and some of the casinos around there.

4) If you haven't played poker in Vegas before I would just recommend the "normal" rooms. 1) Aria 2) Venetian 3) Bellagio. The Aria daily/nightly is the best value for your money - deep stacks, slow levels, bad play. These rooms are also very nice, if you haven't been to Vegas before you will be really impressed with the premium free drinks, solid foods comps, and hot cocktail waitresses

Perfect these are awesome answers! We have decided to do 2 nights at Monte Carlo and 4 nights at MGM since we have free buffets for both hotels when I booked couple months ago! Really looking forward to this trip!

There are too many good restaurants in Vegas to waste your meals on buffets. One should be plenty just to have the buffet experience if you want it.

pretty proud of LVL for helping this much on questions that are pretty often asked.

Unfortunately, you dont have a ton of time to stockpile MyVegas rewards, but the game is free so I think you should do it anyways. Download the phone app as well as play on Facebook. Worst case I think there are cheaper rewards for things like 25% off of dinner and what not.

Someone brought up Tix4Tonight earlier, and I would say plan on using them for every show but O. Keep in mind that Tix4Tonight also has deals for restaurants that rotate pretty frequently.

Good luck, and have fun

Officially the worst reasons for booking either hotel.

Any reason to that? I booked them about 6 months ago and right now when I check, they don't have that offer anymore and their rates are higher as well.

Also I actually do play myVegas and has about 70k loyalty points so trying to decide what to spend them on.

Not sure why your bothering with monte carlo but the buffett at MGM is really good definitely worth trying.

I just picked up a voucher for a free entree at Delights in MGM Signature for only 6,000 LP. Haven't eaten there before, however it seemed like a great value

You could get your fiance's buffet at Monte Carlo or MGM comped (assuming it's not already) with the 2nd myvegas redemption. And maybe some freeplay or pizza and beer from five50 could be your 3rd

Remember you get what you pay for.

The man is choosing his hotels based on free buffets. What could go wrong?

Ahh it feels like I am being suckered into these deals! So if you guys were to do it over again what would your plan be? I still have about a month to go so I am definitely open to suggestions. This is our first trip to Vegas and we really don't plan on going there "on a budget". Only thing that is booked solid is our airfare from Dec 19th to 25th.